Energy

Dr. Bakheet Al Katheeri, the new chairman of its Board of Directors of Tabreed. (Image source: Tabreed)

Tabreed has announced its consolidated financial results for the first half of 2024, alongside changes to its board of directors.

The financial results highlight the company's robust performance, driven by business growth, stable profit margins, and disciplined financial management. Tabreed experienced an 8% year-on-year increase in customer volumes, reflecting higher demand for cooling during the summer and ongoing strategic development over the past year.

The group's revenue for the first half of 2024 increased slightly to US$293.76mn, compared to US$290mn in the same period last year. Tabreed’s EBITDA margin for the first half of 2024 grew to 56% year-on-year, reflecting the company’s ability to achieve strong financial results while expanding its operations. Over the past 12 months, Tabreed has made significant investments totaling US$266mn, yielding a return of 10%.

Sale of bonds

In a demonstration of responsible financial management, Tabreed reduced its debt by 12% in the first half of the year through the repurchase of US$207mn in sukuk due to mature in 2025. This follows the sale of US$33mn of bonds in 2023, bringing the total sukuk repurchased to US$240mn. These efforts are part of Tabreed’s strategy to optimise financing costs and strengthen its balance sheet.

Simultaneously, the company increased its returns to shareholders, with a 15% rise in cash dividends for 2023 compared to the previous year, which were approved by shareholders and paid out in April 2024.

Additionally, in the first half of 2024, Tabreed completed its new district cooling plant on Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi. With a final capacity of 21,000 RT (refrigeration tons), the facility provides sustainable cooling to residential and commercial communities, currently operating at 9,000 RT, with plans to add another 6,000 RT over the next two years.

Tabreed also took steps to expand its global presence by supporting the Big 5 Construct event in Cairo, Egypt. Company executives delivered keynote speeches and participated in high-level discussions with planners, developers, and government officials, emphasizing district cooling as a key solution for sustainable urban development.

Tabreed has announced the appointment of Dr. Bakheet Al Katheeri as the new chairman of its Board of Directors, succeeding Khaled Al Qubaisi, who has served as Tabreed’s chairman since 2017.

Both onshore and offshore operations, and oilfield services did well. (Image source: Adnoc Drilling)

Driven by operational expansion across all business segments, ADNOC Drilling’s second quarter and first half 2024 revenue increased to US$935mn, surpassing US$1.8bn, up year-on-year by 29% and 26% respectively

There was a steady revenue increase in both onshore and offshore operations, and in oilfield services as well. 

“ADNOC Drilling has continued to deliver on its strategic initiatives and has successfully closed the first half of the year on a strong note, achieving multiple milestones.

“The Company’s performance for the period is a continued reflection of our unwavering commitment to operational excellence and efficiency in every aspect of our business. Our achievements for the period are a testament to the relentless dedication of our people, whose efforts are central to delivering outstanding service to our customers and maximising value for our shareholders,”said Abdulrahman Abdulla Al Seiari, CEO, ADNOC Drilling.

The strong top-line translated into record EBITDA both in the quarter and the first half. Second quarter EBITDA increased by 37% year-on-year and 8% sequentially to US$472mn, yielding a 50% EBITDA margin. Consistency in revenue growth and cost-cutting strategies led to US$909mn EBITDA in the first half of the year, up 34% year-on-year and with a margin increase to 50%.

Net profit for the quarter also grew, up 29% year-on-year and 7% sequentially to US$295mn, driven by the increase in EBITDA, while for the first half the figure stood at US$570mn, up 28% year-on-year.

At the end of the second quarter, the fleet consisted of 140 rigs (136 owned plus four lease-to-own land rigs), up from 137 at the end of the first quarter due to the addition of three land rigs.

Encouraged by the positive results, the Board of Directors has approved an interim dividend of US$394mn, +10% year-on-year under new enhanced and progressive dividend policy, equivalent to 9.0468 fils per share.

The interim dividend distribution is expected to be in the last week of August 2024, to all shareholders of record as of August 12, 2024.

The transaction will give TotalEnergies an interest in hydropower projects in Uganda, Rwanda and Malawi. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

TotalEnergies, a global integrated energy company, is set to expand its hydropower portfolio through a strategic acquisition in Africa

The company has signed an agreement with Scatec to acquire its subsidiary SN Power, which holds interests in hydropower projects through a joint venture with Norfund and British International Investment.

“We are pleased to announce today’s transaction, as we believe TotalEnergies will be a strong asset owner going forward, with the ability to further develop the projects and contribute to the energy transition in Africa,” commented Terje Pilskog, CEO of Scatec. “We would like to thank the entire hydropower team for their hard work and dedication over the years, you have made a significant impact. In addition, our gratitude goes to our joint venture partners, host governments, and lenders for the support since 2020.”

The new agreement will further develop TotalEnergies hydropower portfolio (it holds interests in a number of projects across the globe with a gross capacity of 3.7GW worldwide), and complement its existing one in Africa where it already has 1.5GW under development in Mozambique (the Mphanda Nkuwa project).

As a result of the new transaction with Scatec, TotalEnergies will acquire a 28.3% stake in the Bujagali hydropower plant currently in operation in Uganda. With a capacity of 250MW, it covers more than 25% of the country's peak electricity demand. TotalEnergies will also acquire minority stakes in two projects under development in Rwanda (260MW) and Malawi (360MW).

“This acquisition of renewable hydroelectric assets and projects in Africa reflects our desire to contribute to the continent's energy transition by bringing electricity to the people of African countries,” remarked Patrick Pouyanné, chairman and CEO of TotalEnergies. “In particular, we are delighted to be able to become a player in hydro power in Uganda, a country where we are also developing a major oil project. This is another example of TotalEnergies’ ability to implement its multi-energy strategy in oil-producing countries to support them in their energy transition.”

Aviation is a key focus for Masdar's green hydrogen business. (Image source: Masdar)

Masdar has signed an agreement with TotalEnergies to look at developing a commercial green hydrogen to methanol to SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel) project

It follows a successful test flight conducted by the two companies during COP28 in December 2023 that demonstrated the potential for converting methanol to SAF.

The project will help decarbonise hard to abate, emission intensive sectors such as the aviation and maritime industries. The project will also capture and utilise CO2 from an industrial source to be used as a feedstock, in addition to green hydrogen from renewable energy powered electrolysis, for the production of green methanol and SAF.

Aviation is a key focus for Masdar’s Green Hydrogen business, and over the past three years the company has forged a number of strategic partnerships designed to support the development and growth of the SAF sector.

The UAE’s General Policy for Sustainable Aviation Fuel set a voluntary target of providing 1% of fuel supplied to national airlines at UAE airports using locally produced SAF by 2031 and seeks to develop a national regulatory framework for SAF by exploring potential policies to support the long-term economic operation of SAF facilities in the UAE.

The agreement aligns with Abu Dhabi’s Low Carbon Hydrogen Policy which is expected to significantly contribute to promoting low-carbon hydrogen as a future energy source, and the UAE’s National Hydrogen Strategy, which seeks to establish the UAE as a leading global producer of low carbon hydrogen by 2031. Masdar is looking to become a leading producer of green hydrogen by 2030.